]]>http://ymobileblog.com/blog/2013/06/24/weve-moved/feed/0http://ymobileblog.com/blog/2013/06/24/weve-moved/Re-thinking Mobile Browsing – Yahoo! Axishttp://feedproxy.google.com/~r/YahooMobile/~3/f22ePNfOHfo/
http://ymobileblog.com/blog/2012/05/23/re-thinking-mobile-browsing-yahoo-axis/#commentsThu, 24 May 2012 04:10:51 +0000Yahoo! Mobile Teamhttp://ymobileblog.com/blog/?p=1339We live in a “mobile first” world these days. What does that mean exactly? Well it means that apps and websites should be designed and tailor-fitted with experiences optimized for these smaller, mobile screens. Not only do the experiences need to fit the device you’re using, your data and content need to come with you, wherever you go.

If you’re like me you have two computers, a phone, and a tablet and constantly switch devices throughout the day. How many times do you start something on your tablet at home but have to leave to catch the train or meet a friend?, Today, when we move from device to device, we have to start over, whether that’s doing the same search again or trying to find that article you were halfway through reading. Wouldn’t it be nice if our devices recognized us when we pick them up so we can literally pick up where we left off?

Well, the days of starting over, are over. Today, I am pleased to introduce Yahoo! Axis – a fundamentally new way to search and browse the web on your iPhone, iPad, iPod touch, and your favorite desktop browser as a plug-in.

Yahoo! Axis provides a seamless flow across devices

Yahoo! Axis for the iPhone, iPad and iPod touch seamlessly combines the searching and browsing experience into one single, visually-rich app. It all starts with one box that lets you search or go directly to any website. As you type, you’ll start to instantly see rich visual previews of web pages. Whether you’re doing research on your next vacation or just need to get to Trip Advisor, Axis gives you the most direct path to whatever it is you’re looking for while completely eliminating the need to go to a search results page. We have been conditioned to go “back” if we need access to our search results, but with Axis, your search results are always with you – reveal them at any time by simply pulling down on any page. No need to go back, Axis keeps you moving forward.

But the unique search experience is just one piece of it. Axis also automatically connects the experience across your iPhone, iPad, iPod touch, and computer. In fact, it’s the only mobile browser that connects any major HTML5 browser (Chrome, Firefox, Safari, IE) so you can continue using the browser of your choice. With Axis, links to recent sites you have viewed, bookmarks, and articles marked to read later are all available instantly whenever and wherever you need them. Now you really can keep moving forward as you switch devices.

Yahoo! built Axis for the iPhone and iPad as a hybrid app – part native objective-c, part HTML5, and part awesome. You get the best of all worlds. With the native components you get smooth interactions, animations, and the freedom to implement things impossible to do with today’s web. The HMTL5 bits are actually powered by a Yahoo! open-source platform called “Cocktails.” As Bruno Fernandez-Ruiz explains in his post (link to post) “Cocktails is a mix of HTML5, Node.JS, CSS3, JavaScript and a lot of ingenious, creative mind-bending tricks from Yahoo!’s engineers.”

One of the really big benefits that “Cocktails” brings to the table is the fact that server-side and client-side code is written in the same programming language. This not only bridges the gap of resources and technical skills, but the same code can be used for both the client and server side. Not only is the “Cocktails” platform some amazing technology for our developers, it helps our users experience new features without requiring an app update.

Axis is a great example of how Yahoo! is innovating not just for mobile devices, but also search. It’s another step we’re taking to remove the need for “ten blue links” and focus on our mantra to provide our users with “answers, not links.” Axis is available right now in the App Store so make sure you try it out on your iPhone and your iPad. If you want more information about Axis for your desktop or the iPhone and iPad apps, check out axis.yahoo.com or Yodel Anecdotal.

Scott Fish & the Yahoo! Axis Team

]]>http://ymobileblog.com/blog/2012/05/23/re-thinking-mobile-browsing-yahoo-axis/feed/28http://ymobileblog.com/blog/2012/05/23/re-thinking-mobile-browsing-yahoo-axis/Livestand Gets A New Lookhttp://feedproxy.google.com/~r/YahooMobile/~3/ast9mGEl3BE/
http://ymobileblog.com/blog/2012/04/10/livestand-gets-a-new-look/#commentsTue, 10 Apr 2012 23:25:20 +0000Yahoo! Mobile Teamhttp://ymobileblog.com/blog/?p=1262Today we’re releasing the latest version of Livestand from Yahoo!, getting you closer to all the rich, digital content you love. In case you need a reminder, Livestand is a living magazine app for the iPad that transforms your favorite articles, photos and videos into a beautiful, interactive and personalized experience. With enhanced navigation features and a revamped layout with new reading options, the latest version of Livestand is now even easier to find and enjoy the latest content that matters to you most.

Livestand Pull-Down Option in My Library

Specific updates include:

A redesigned My Library experience: A pull-down feature provides an at-a-glance view of the latest headlines.

Enhanced options for adding new topics to Library: New publications tagged appear directly in your Library, making it even easier to see all the new, fresh content at your fingertips.

MyYahoo! and Google Reader: Tracking all your favorite sites and blogs can now be done with the integrated MyYahoo! or Google Reader feature. A few simple taps will bring all your feeds into your Livestand library.

A new Shelf icon to better find and categorize content: The Shelf lets you intuitively explore titles and add them to your Library while reading.

New shelf icon available on Livestand

Other updates include automatic log-in, allowing you to more quickly pick up where you left-off; a first-time user tutorial to introduce you to the best features of the app; and improved article presentation with full images in a publisher-ready layout.

The latest app is live in the app store and ready to download, check it out here, and let us know what you think!

]]>http://ymobileblog.com/blog/2012/04/10/livestand-gets-a-new-look/feed/7http://ymobileblog.com/blog/2012/04/10/livestand-gets-a-new-look/Follow MLB Action Across Four Screens with Yahoo!http://feedproxy.google.com/~r/YahooMobile/~3/Bbv0NhpeaRE/
http://ymobileblog.com/blog/2012/04/03/follow-mlb-action-across-four-screens-with-yahoo/#commentsTue, 03 Apr 2012 22:17:02 +0000Yahoo! Mobile Teamhttp://ymobileblog.com/blog/?p=1292The 2012 Major League Baseball season kicked off last week in Japan and official games are beginning on US soil this week. This year, Yahoo! has some exciting new and updated products to enjoy across both PC, TV, mobile and tablet devices to make sure you won’t miss any part of the action throughout the season. In addition to all of the great content available on Yahoo! Sports, including articles, videos and fantasy sports, be sure to check out these baseball experiences across Yahoo!:

Yahoo! Fantasy Baseball app: Now available on both iPhone and Android phones, the newly designed app makes managing your team easier than ever. It gives you fantasy score updates in real-time, and the ability to view teams, leagues, and player stats, edit your lineups, and check your standings and matchups. The new look app also lets you be smart about your game strategy, allowing you to easily improve your teams by searching for free agents and reading about breaking player news. Download the app on your iPhone and/or Android phone today.

Yahoo! Sportacular: The MLB tab within the Sportacular app provides up-to-the-minute play-by-plays and stats for every game, along with Yahoo! Sports news, blogs and videos, overall scores, standings, and schedules for the season. The new Facebook Connect option also offers in-game chatting (for either camaraderie or trash talking, take your pick!) For those mad fans out there who can’t afford to miss a thing, push notification alerts provide updates on scoring plays, close games and innings. The features are available on iPhone, iPad and Android devices.

IntoNow from Yahoo!: Tag the games you’re watching on TV using IntoNow and share with friends across Facebook and Twitter. Join in-app discussions on Buster Posey’s home run or debate with other enthusiasts on whether that last pitch was a strike. Stay tuned for additional features just for the MLB season on IntoNow, available on iPhone, iPad and Android devices.

Yahoo! Sports for Connected TV: Fans with Yahoo! Connected TV on Sony®, VIZIO®, Samsung®, and Toshiba® TVs can use the Yahoo! Sports TV App to get MLB news, scores, schedules, photos, and videos with a simple click of the remote, right to your TV screen. View live game information for your favorite team, including batter, pitcher, balls, strikes, outs and runs scored. For more information, please see the Yahoo! Connected TV blog post.

MLB.com Full Count on Yahoo!: Beginning April 5, MLB.com Full Count goes live, offering fans the ability to follow live MLB action through the regular season online. Announced in September as a partnership with MLB.com and Yahoo!, MLB.com Full Count features live look-ins to key plays and pivotal moments and in-progress video highlights from around the league, as well as statistical data and historical footage relevant to the day’s action. Additionally, fans can pause the live action or navigate back to content from earlier in the video stream to catch up on events from earlier in the day. MLB.com Full Count also includes an embedded Twitter feed for tracking MLB.com insiders, Yahoo! baseball reporters, expert analysts choosing upcoming live looks and social media activity buzzing around live MLB games.

So there’s no excuse to get set up and stay in-the-know for the 2012 baseball season. Support your team!

]]>http://ymobileblog.com/blog/2012/04/03/follow-mlb-action-across-four-screens-with-yahoo/feed/4http://ymobileblog.com/blog/2012/04/03/follow-mlb-action-across-four-screens-with-yahoo/Flickr’s Most Popular Camera – iPhone 4http://feedproxy.google.com/~r/YahooMobile/~3/IriqGHAhYDY/
http://ymobileblog.com/blog/2012/04/02/flickrs-most-popular-camera-iphone-4/#commentsMon, 02 Apr 2012 18:35:43 +0000Yahoo! Mobile Teamhttp://ymobileblog.com/blog/?p=1276Spring has officially arrived on the world’s most popular photo sharing site. In March, over 88 million images were uploaded to Flickr. Seasonal photography rose to the top of our trending list, bringing our collection of images tagged “spring” to over 5 million. And thanks to record-breaking temperatures across the country, pictures of blossoms popped up at No. 4.

March was a big month for fun as well. The annual SXSW music, film, and technology festival nabbed the No. 2 spot on our trending list. Third place went to St. Patrick’s Day. Apparently our photographers are a very lucky bunch – there are nearly 1,000 pictures tagged as four-leaf clovers on Flickr. March Madness rounded out the top five this month.

Though their inspiration changed, our users stayed true to their technology. The iPhone 4 was once again the most popular camera on Flickr, followed by DSLRs from Canon and Nikon.

For more interesting Flickr trends, including a special section for foodies, check out the March Trend Report below:

Editor’s note: This story was written by Chris Crum for WebProNews on March 27, 2012.

Yahoo! Chief Product Officer, Blake Irving, spoke about “the next Web” (not the technology blog) at the Adobe Digital Marketing Summit last week. Yahoo! has posted a “concise version” of his opening remarks from the event, in which he talks about the future of the web, which will be driven in large part by Yahoo!, if Irving has anything to say about it. “I see a future where deeply personal digital experiences are easy to discover, delightful to consume, and effortless to share,” he says. “If done right, it will transform the way people use the Web. When I say ‘deep personalization,’ I don’t just mean some preference controls; I mean content that is so timely, relevant and personal that it actually adds meaning to your life.”

“Every hour C.O.R.E. processes 1.2 terrabytes of data in order to learn how a user’s behaviors and interests influence the likelihood of clicking on a specific article,” the Yahoo! spokesperson told us last month. “And, every day, C.O.R.E. personalizes 2.2 billion pieces of content for Yahoo! users.”

“Since optimizing with C.O.R.E., Yahoo!’s Homepage click-through rate has increased 300%,” she said at the time. “Yahoo!’s personalization approach is a clever mix of scientific algorithms and human judgment, as editors have control to override C.O.R.E. at any time, to ensure certain stories are seen. Initially developed within Yahoo! Labs, C.O.R.E. has become a vital tool used throughout the day by editors across the company to bring our users personalized news, first.”

We can’t be sure if this is the main driving force of what Yahoo! is considering “the next Web,” but my guess is that it’s a key element. Of course, it’s not as if personalization of content is really a new thing, let alone the next thing. In fact, Irving has been singing a similar tune for quite some time. Here’s a video from 2010 where he’s talking about making the web personal Blake Irving: Make the Web personal for consumers.

Still, personalization of content can still get better, and that appears to be a primary focus for Yahoo!. “In future, I see a Web that acts on my behalf, one that finds content and connections for me and presents it to me in context—aware of my location, my activity, my social situation, my economics and my most timely considerations,” says Irving. “I see a Web where trust and transparency are the price of entry for publishers and technology providers, and where relationships are understood and cherished—on both sides of the connection.” “If the technology economic model is done right, the best content will just come to me, and it will be as diverse and nuanced as I am—and as you are,” he says. “It’s not about vague categories of interest—cars, sports, technology, advertising, whatever. It’s about just the content I’d go out to find if I had the time and resources do it manually. It’s down there in the tail of the Web. And, even more so, it’s down in the torso of the Web—where there are economics at play, albeit a model that is mostly broken.” He says that there’s “no question” that the Web will become deeply personal, and that it’s just a matter of who makes it happen. He seems to think Yahoo! has a shot at being the one, or at least a major contributor. And that might in fact be the case. As I write this (at about 12:15 EST), Yahoo! has already had nearly 60 million homepage views for the day.

There are a lot of other companies contributing to the personalization of content consumption. Yahoo! may very well be the gateway to a lot of it, but the social efforts of companies like Google, Facebook and others are already driving this to a huge extent.

Yahoo! is undergoing a major transformation. Will it work? Who knows?
Yahoo! is 17 years old. Where will it be in another 17 years?

]]>http://ymobileblog.com/blog/2012/03/30/will-the-next-web-belong-to-yahoo/feed/7http://ymobileblog.com/blog/2012/03/30/will-the-next-web-belong-to-yahoo/Play Ball! Introducing Yahoo! Fantasy Baseball App for Androidhttp://feedproxy.google.com/~r/YahooMobile/~3/EpqCv4A-xAw/
http://ymobileblog.com/blog/2012/03/29/play-ball-introducing-yahoo-fantasy-baseball-app-for-android/#commentsThu, 29 Mar 2012 16:59:33 +0000Yahoo! Mobile Teamhttp://ymobileblog.com/blog/?p=1243Hey baseball fans,
For those of you building out fantasy teams for the upcoming MLB season, we have just introduced a brand new Android app just in time for opening day. Yahoo! Fantasy Baseball for Android gives you real-time fantasy score updates wherever you go. View team, league, and player stats, edit your lineups, trade players, talk trash in message boards and check your standings and matchups.

Additional Features:

• Real-time fantasy score updates: View team, league, and player stats for all league type

• Manage your lineup. View and set your lineup for today and upcoming days

Yahoo! Fantasy Baseball is available for download in Google Play. We are extremely excited about this release and can’t wait for you to get started. Let us know what you think! And stay tuned for additional Fantasy Baseball apps launching on iPhone and iPad soon.

]]>http://ymobileblog.com/blog/2012/03/29/play-ball-introducing-yahoo-fantasy-baseball-app-for-android/feed/4http://ymobileblog.com/blog/2012/03/29/play-ball-introducing-yahoo-fantasy-baseball-app-for-android/The Times They Are a Changing…and These Apps They are A-Goinghttp://feedproxy.google.com/~r/YahooMobile/~3/BwnoF4xoIzw/
http://ymobileblog.com/blog/2012/01/27/the-times-they-are-a-changing/#commentsFri, 27 Jan 2012 20:14:01 +0000Yahoo! Mobile Teamhttp://ymobileblog.com/blog/?p=1230As all of you know, the mobile space moves incredibly fast. Our users are changing, and their needs are changing. New devices and new technologies are coming to market seemingly every day, not to mention the rate at which app stores are growing. All of us are looking for the freshest, most interesting apps and content all day, every day.

At Yahoo!, we’re focused on creating deeply personal digital experiences and there’s no doubt that one of the biggest, if not the biggest, priorities for us is to bring those products and ideas to the mobile user, whether they’re using feature phones, smartphones or tablets.

We’ve got some amazing mobile experiences, from News, Sports and Finance, to Mail, Messenger and entirely new products like IntoNow and Livestand. Our commitment is to deliver these products in ways that help all of our users (and advertisers) enjoy engaging and seamless experiences across all the devices they use.

Our plan is to keep moving, to keep innovating, and to continuously measure and scrutinize what’s working and what isn’t – so we can make room for great new products. In that spirit, today we’re decommissioning several of our current mobile apps. We will be sending a notification later today that the following apps will no longer be supported:

Yahoo! Meme (iPad and iPhone)

Yahoo! Mim (iPad)

Yahoo! Answers (Android)

Yahoo! AppSpot (Android and iPhone)

Yahoo! Deals (iPhone)

Yahoo! Finance (BlackBerry)

Yahoo! Movies (Android)

Yahoo! News (Android)

Yahoo! Shopping (iPhone)

Yahoo! Sketch-a-Search (iPad and iPhone)

We’re moving forward with a “mobile first” mindset. You can expect to see more new Yahoo! mobile products in 2012, especially in areas ripe for innovation that build on Yahoo!’s strengths, such as companion experiences for TV like IntoNow, new ways to experience personalized media like Livestand, and some of our most popular and useful mobile apps like Yahoo! Mail, Messenger, Sportacular and Flickr, which are already being used by millions of people around the world. And we’ll be building these experiences with disruptive technology that’s going to change the mobile game well beyond Yahoo!.

For apps such as AppSpot and Sketch-a-Search, we decided to integrate the key features you know and love into the Yahoo! Search app. For example, we recently announced the app search feature in the Yahoo! Search app for iPhone. Stay tuned for more updates to the mobile search apps for both iPhone and Android.

With more than 700 million users around the world, we’ve got a huge and growing audience. We’re going to bring them the Yahoo! they love on every device in their life.

Stay tuned for a lot of action from Yahoo this year. 2012 has just begun and we’re just getting started.

– The Yahoo! Mobile Team

]]>http://ymobileblog.com/blog/2012/01/27/the-times-they-are-a-changing/feed/8http://ymobileblog.com/blog/2012/01/27/the-times-they-are-a-changing/Yahoo!’s Holiday Gift to You – New Features and Content for Livestandhttp://feedproxy.google.com/~r/YahooMobile/~3/LJNWU-Pg92g/
http://ymobileblog.com/blog/2011/12/21/new-features-and-content-for-livestand/#commentsWed, 21 Dec 2011 20:59:08 +0000Yahoo! Mobile Teamhttp://ymobileblog.com/blog/?p=1212Just in time for folks to unwrap new iPads or simply spend more time with the iPad they already own this holiday season, Yahoo! has dropped new features and content for Livestand. Time to sink into your couch.

In only six short weeks since Livestand’s debut in the App Store (picked as one of Apple’s featured apps), we’ve added in more entertaining features and popular titles to give you an even more personalized digital newsstand. And we’re still not finished – we’ll continue to iterate the app as we hear back from users like you!

In that spirit, here’s a look at what is new in the app today. To download the updated app or try it out for the first time here, visit the App Store for Livestand.

A new recipe finder in Shine from Yahoo! so you can browse recipes and create handy shopping lists. Cooking for a holiday celebration? This is a great time saver.

Local deals from your favorite sites like Groupon, LivingSocial or Bloomspot are now seamlessly integrated into Yahoo! Today and Shine from Yahoo!.

New Guest Mode to allow you to take a tour and experience Livestand without signing in. It’s now a lot easier for your friends and family to take a peek at what Livestand would be for them. Just make sure to get your iPad back when they’re done!

Twitter integration to share articles, videos and more with a few taps. Simply log into your Twitter account through “Settings” on your iPad and start socializing.

New publications, including:

Shine from Yahoo!

Technology Review published by MIT

The Ticket from Yahoo! News (a new title focused entirely on the 2012 Elections)

Minyanville

Victorian Christmas

Big Think

We have big plans for Livestand in the coming year and will always be creating new ways to more relevant, more personal for you. We’ll be adding new capabilities (many of which you’ve let us know you want), and of course, a lot more great content that you’ll want to jump into every chance you get. 2012 will be a busy year!

For those heavy texters out there, we are excited to introduce Hub, a fast and easy-to-use mobile messaging app that allows you to send text messages and have group conversations for free. Hub allows you to easily add participants to any conversation thread so it’s easy to switch from private messaging to a group conversation. Whether it is just keeping up with a close group of friends or making spontaneous plans, you no longer have to deal with scattered messages.

What’s more, Hub allows you to send messages to anyone without incurring any text messaging fees. Yes, you heard us right. There are no text messaging fees – messages are sent over WIFI or using your data connection – and Hub is device agnostic, which means you can communicate with anyone on any mobile device as long as you have their mobile phone numbers. Your friends are not required to download the app in order to reply to your messages although they are strongly encouraged to do so in order to enjoy the full feature set!

Key features of Hub include:

Group Messaging: Enjoy group conversations with several friends at once

Local and international SMS messages: Send text messages to other Hub users or any mobile phone for free†

Privacy: Easily view and add participants to any conversation thread

Message any phone: Your friends can reply with any SMS enabled mobile phone

Instant notifications: Get push notifications for incoming messages so you never have to miss a conversation

Hub is currently in beta and is available for download on the Android Marketplace. We are extremely excited about this release and can’t wait for you to get started. Try Hub today and let us know what you think!

Yahoo! Messenger Team

Note: Hub requires Android OS 2.1+ and is currently available only to users with a US SIM card and a text plan.

†This feature is currently available when sending to numbers in Canada, Indonesia, India, Kuwait, Malaysia, Philippines, Pakistan, Thailand, United States and Vietnam. SMS recipients may be charged by their carriers.